Incense of Prayer

Revelation 8:1-5 (ESV)

When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. Then I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them. And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar before the throne, and the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel. Then the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth, and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.

Devotional:

When reading these verses I can imagine the incense floating up toward God.  I can almost hear a multitude of voices being lifted up.  I see an image of all our prayers being lifted to God.  To me it is a reassuring image of God hearing our prayers.  They do not fall upon deaf ears.  1 John 5:14 (ESV) “And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.”

God hears our calls.  He listens to us when we cry out.  Take a look at a parent.  When their child cries out in pain or need the parent hears them.  What is amazing is a mom’s ability to single out her child out of dozens upon the playground.  A parent instinctively knows the cry of their baby or child.  It doesn’t matter how many others are there.  It doesn’t matter how many are crying.  A mom knows her child’s cry.

In this same way, only better, God hears our cries.  He hears each one individually.  He reaches out to us.  He answers our prayers.  He tends to us only as the perfect father can.

When you are uncertain that your prayers are being heard just think about that mom on a playground.  Know that God does hear them.  Not only that but he attentively listens to each one and answers them all.